Jack construction

ABSTRACT

A jack head including a stem adapted to be mounted on a jack, a head, and a connection for securing said head to said stem for combined pivotal and translational movement relative thereto so as to follow the arc of a body being lifted by said jack, said connection including spring means coupled between said head and said stem for biasing said head to a first position when said head is not supporting a load but permitting said head to move to a second position rotationally and translationally removed from said first position when said head supports said load.

United States Patent [191 [111 3,765,650 Eisenhauer Oct. 16, 1973 [541 JACK CONSTRUCTION [76] Inventor: Elroy C. Eisenhauer, 775.Tifft St.,

Buffalo, NY. 14220 [22] Filed: Mar. 29, 1972 211 Appl. No.: 239,217

[52] US. Cl. 254/133 [51] Int. Cl B66f 3/38 [58] Field of Search 254/93 H, 35, 84, 254/124, 133, I34, DIG. 4

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,190,163 7/1916 Hedman 254/DIG. 4

2,469,670 5/1949 Thompson 254/134 3,029,065 4/1962 Buddingh 254/35 Arnes 254/124 Primary Examinerthell M. Simpson Assistant Examiner-Robert C. Watson AttorneyJoseph P. Gastel 7] ABSTRACT A jack head including a stem adapted to be mounted on a jack, a head, and a connection for securing said head to said stem for combined pivotal and translational movement relative thereto so as to follow the arc of a body being lifted by said jack, said connection including spring means coupled between said head and said stem for biasing said head to a first position when said head is not supporting a load but permitting said head to move to a second position rotationally and translationally removed from said first position when said head supports said load.

11 Claims, 15 Drawing Figures 7 4 9' L77 39 I I 7 7 k. l 72 0 I l 12 2 fa Patented 0d. 16, 1973 3,765,650

2 Sheets-Sheet .1

Patented Oct. 16, 1973 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 JACK CONSTRUCTION The present invention relates to an improved jack head construction for mounting on a jack.

It is one object of the present invention to provide an improved jack head construction which may be mounted on a jack for the purpose of providing a combined rotational and translational movement as the body being lifted rises so as to permit the jack itself to remain substantially vertical rather than being tipped to the point where it can fall over.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved jack head which has provision for mounting various types of attachments so as to be capable of lifting bodies of various configurations in a highly efficient manner. Other objects and attendant advantages of the present invention will readily be perceived hereafter.

The improved jack head of the present invention comprises a stem which is adapted to be mounted on a jack, a head, and a connection between said stem and said head for securing said head to said stem for combined pivotal and translational movement relative thereto so as to substantially follow the arc of a body being lifted by said jack. The jack head also includes means for receiving various types of attachments for lifting bodies of different configurations in a highly efficient manner. The various aspects of the present invention will be more fully understood when the following portions of the specification are read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view showing the improved jack head of the present invention mounted on a jack and supporting an object such as the bumper of a vehicle;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the improved jack head taken substantially in the direction of arrows 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an end elevational view of the improved jack head taken substantially in the direction of arrows 33 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary cross sectional view of the improved jack taken substantially along line 4-4 of FIG. 2 and showing the head under load;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary enlarged view ofa portion of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary cross sectional view similar to FIG. 4 but showing the position which the jack head assumes when it is not under load;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an attachment for the improved head of the present invention which is used for the purpose of causing the jack head to support a relatively low object;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an attachment for the improved jack head for engaging a relatively low object, such as the side of a low slung vehicle having a hole to receive a lug therein;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of an attachment for the jack head for the purpose of engaging a vehicle leaf spring;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an attachment for the improved jack head for the purpose of engaging a round body such as the rear axle housing of a vehicle;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of another attachment for the improved jack head of the present invention which may be used for the purpose of engaging a vehi cle bumper;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of another attachment for the improved jack head which can be used for engaging a rounded body such as the differential housing of a vehicle;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of another attachment for the improved jack head for engaging a round bar or a V-shaped member; and

FIG. 15 is a schematic view showing the path which the improved jack head follows when lifting a body such as a vehicle.

The improved jack head 10 of the present invention is adapted to be mounted on stem 11 of hydraulic jack 12 having actuating handle 13 suitably secured thereto. Jack 12 may be of any conventional hydraulic construction or may be a mechanical type. Jack head 10 includes a stem 14 of substantially solid cylindrical configuration having a bore '15 at the lower end thereof which is adapted to receive jack stem 11 and which is coupled thereto by means of a bolt 16 which extends through aligned apertures 17 at the bottom of stem 14 and aperture 18 in stem 11. A pair of diametrically opposed set screws 18 are threaded into the lower portion of stem 14 for engaging opposite sides of stem 11 to thereby stabilize stem 14 in its mounted position.

A jack head 19, which is fabricated from a solid block of metal, is mounted at the top of stem 14 for combined pivotal and translational movement. In this respect a bolt 20 extends through aligned apertures 21 and 22 in opposite side portions 23 and 24, respectively, of head 19, bolt 20 also extending through elongated hole 25 in the top portion of stem 14. The top portion of stem 14 has inclined planar face 26 and horizontal planar face 27 formed thereon, and the top portion of stem 14 fits into opening 28 in head 19, said opening being trapezoidal in vertical cross section (FIG. 5) and rectangular in plan (FIG. 2) and including opposed parallel side walls 29 and 30, vertical end wall 31, inclined end wall 32, and horizontal upper wall 33 which extends between side walls 29 and 30, as do walls 31 and 32. A horizontal notch 34 extends across stem 14 proximate the lower edge 46 of head 19. An ear 35, which is located on the centerline of head 19, has an opening 36 therein for receiving the end 37 of spring 38, the other end 39 of which is received in hole 40 of ear 41 which is secured, as by welding, centrally on the lower portion of stem 14.

Head 19 includes recess 43 therein for receiving an item such as automobile bumper 44, and it is to be noted that recess 43 is on the opposite side of pin 20 from spring 38. When there is no load on head 19, it assumes the position shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 under the bias of spring 38 and pin 20 is located at the upper portion of slot 25 and edge 46 rests in notch 34 and opening 28 and the upper portion of stem 14 are out of alignment, as shown in FIG. 7. After the jack is placed under the bumper, as in FIG. 15, and as the jack head 19 accepts the load as it is moved upwardly by the jack, head 19 will pivot in a clockwise direction from the position shown in FIG. 6 to the position shown in FIG. 4. This pivoting is effected against the bias of spring 38 and not only does head 19 pivot but it also moves to the right because pin 20 moves from the upper portion of slot 25 to the lower portion thereof because pin 20 and slot 25 provide a lost-motion connection. Thus, head 19 travels through an are which is the resultant of its combined pivotal and translational movement. The are which it follows is substantially the same as the are 20' (FIG. which the body 45 being lifted follows, and therefore there is a minimal tendency for the jack to be pulled over as it effects the lifting. The tendency to tip is further minimized by the fact that jack 12 is welded to base plate 12' which is almost as wide as it is long.

It is further to be noted that after the jack head 19 accepts the entire load and moves to the position of FIG. 4, there is a complementary mating fit between the top of the stem 14 and opening 28 so that stem 14 carries the entire load. It will be appreciated that the strength of spring 38 is such that it yields upon accepting the load to which it is to be subjected, for example, it will yield when lifting a car after it accepts the proportion of the weight of the car that is loaded on it when the tires leave the ground.

The improved head 19 of the present invention includes a pair of flanges 47 and 48 secured to opposite sides of head 19, as by welding, for the purpose of providing a slot 49 for receiving various types of attachments. One type of attachment 51 is shown in FIG. 8 which includes an upper horizontal portion 50, an intermediate vertical portion 51 and a lower horizontal portion 52. Upper horizontal portion 50 is received in slot 49 with the end thereof abutting block 49' and apertures 53 are thus placed in alignment with apertures 54 (FIG. 4) in jack head 19. Thereafter, bolts (not shown) are passed downwardly through aligned apertures 54, 53 and 55, the latter being in flanges 47 and 48. By placing the attachment of FIG. 8 on head 19, portion 52 can be placed under an extremely low body for lifting it upwardly. The attachment 56 of FIG. 9 is identical in all respects to that shown in FIG. 8 but in addition includes a cylindrical lug 57 which is adapted to be received in a suitable aperture which is found in the rocker panel of an automobile. The attachment 58 of FIG. 14 includes a horizontal bar 59 having apertures 60 at one end thereof for alignment with apertures 54 and 55 for receiving bolts after the end 61 of bar 59 is received in slot 49. A V-shaped member 62 is welded on bar 59 and this member can accept for lifting a cylindrical bar or a bar of complementary mating relationship.

.lack head 19 also includes a centrally located bore 64 for receiving another series of attachments shown in FIGS. 10-13. More specifically, attachment 65 includes a cylindrical stem 66 having a bore 67 extending diametrically therethrough. Bore 67 is placed in alignment with bores 68 and 69 in jack head 19 and a bolt is threaded through aligned apertures 67, 68 and 69 to affix stem 66 to head 19. Thereafter, the head portion 70 may be used to lift a car by inserting a car leaf spring into slot 71. It is to be noted that stem 66 will be located on the opposite side of pin from spring 38 (FIG. 4) and therefore the same type of action will be obtained with the use of an attachment such as shown in FIG. 10 as is obtained as when lifting a bumper such as 44 in recess 43.

The embodiments of FIGS. 12-13 include stems which are identical to stem 66 noted above having bore 67 therethrough and these stems are mounted in bore 64 of head 19 as described in detail above. However, the embodiments of FIGS. 11, 12 and 13 have different shaped heads for engaging bodies of different shapes. More specifically, the concave head 73 shown in FIG. 11 is for the purpose of receiving an object such as the rear axle housing of an automobile. The formed head 74, shown in FIG. 12, is for the purpose of receiving an object such as the bumper of a vehicle and the concave head 75, shown in FIG. 13, is for the purpose of engaging an object such as a differential housing of an automobile.

A slot 43 is provided in the end face 42 of the head for engaging a thin plate and lifting a body through such end engagement. Furthermore, the top of head 19 terminates at three coplanar ledges 76, 77 and 78 so that the jack head can be used to lift a body having a planar surface which will receive these ledges.

It can thus be seen that the improved jack head of the present invention is manifestly capable of achieving the above enumerated objects and while preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, it will be appreciated that it is not limited thereto but may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. Ajack head comprising a stem, a head, connection means for securing said head to said stem for combined pivotal and translational movement relative thereto so as to follow the arc of a body being lifted by said jack, and spring means coupled between said stem and said head for biasing said head to a first position when said head is not supporting a load but permitting said head to move to a second position rotationally and translationally removed from said first position when said head supports a load.

2. A jack head as set forth in claim 1 wherein said connection means comprises a first part on said stem, a second part on said head in mating engagement with said first part, and a lost-motion connection coupling said stem and said head.

3. A jack head as set forth in claim 2 wherein said first part comprises a portion of first trapezoidal cross section at the upper portion of said stem, and wherein said second part comprises an opening of substantially mating second trapezoidal cross section in said head, said first and second trapezoidal cross sections being out of alignment because of the bias of said spring when said head is not under load and being in substantial alignment with said head bearing on said stem in substantially complementary mating relationship when under load, whereby said load is transmitted directly to said stem by said head after said pivotal and translational movement.

4. A jack head as set forth in claim 2 wherein said connection means includes a pivotal axis and wherein said head includes a load bearing portion on the opposite side of said pivotal axis from said spring means.

5. A jack head as set forth in claim 4 including attachment connecting means on said head for receiving attachments for lifting bodies of a predetermined type.

6. A jack head as set forth in claim 5 wherein said attachment connecting means comprises a bore in said head to receive a second stem having a second head of predetermined configuration thereon.

7. A jack head as set forth in claim 6 wherein said bore is located in said head between said pivot means and said load bearing portions so as to cause said head to pivot and translate in the same manner when a body is being lifted by said attachments as when said body is being lifted by said load bearing portion of said head.

8. A jack head as set forth in claim 5 wherein said attachment connecting means comprises slot means on said head, and an attachment including a bar portion which is received in said slot means.

9. A jack head as set forth in claim 8 wherein said slot means comprises a housing secured relative to the underside of said head proximate said load bearing portion.

is in position in said slot means.

11. Ajack head as set forth in claim wherein said attachment includes a portion which extends downwardly away from said head for lifting an object which 10. A jack head as set forth in claim 9 including 5 is located below the level of said head.

means for securing said bar to said head when said bar 

1. A jack head comprising a stem, a head, connection means for securing said head to said stem for combined pivotal and translational movement relative thereto so as to follow the arc of a body being lifted by said jack, and spring means coupled between said stem and said head for biasing said head to a first position when said head is not supporting a load but permitting said head to move to a second position rotationally and translationally removed from said first position when said head supports a load.
 2. A jack head as set forth in claim 1 wherein said connection means comprises a first part on said stem, a second part on said head in mating engagement with said first part, and a lost-motion connection coupling said stem and said head.
 3. A jack head as set forth in claim 2 wherein said first part comprises a portion of first trapezoidal cross section at the upper portion of said stem, and wherein said second part comprises an opening of substantially mating second trapezoidal cross section in said head, said first and second trapezoidal cross sections being out of alignment because of the bias of said spring when said head is not under load and being in substantial alignment with said head bearing on said stem in substantially complementary mating relationship when under load, whereby said load is transmitted directly to said stem by said head after said pivotal and translational movement.
 4. A jack head as set forth in claim 2 wherein said connection means includes a pivotal axis and wherein said head includes a load bearing portion on the opposite side of said pivotal axis from said spring means.
 5. A jack head as set forth in claim 4 including attachment connecting means on said head for receiving attachments for lifting bodies of a predetermined type.
 6. A jack head as set forth in claim 5 wherein said attachment connecting means comprises a bore in said head to receive a second stem having a second head of predetermined configuration thereon.
 7. A jack head as set forth in claim 6 wherein said bore is located in said head between said pivot means and said load bearing portions so as to cause said head to pivot and translate in the same manner when a body is being lifted by said attachments as when said body is being lifted by said load bearing portion of said head.
 8. A jack head as set forth in claim 5 wherein said attachment connecting means comprises slot means on said head, and an attachment including a bar portion which is received in said slot means.
 9. A jack head as set forth in claim 8 wherein said slot means comprises a housing secured relative to the underside of said head proximate said load bearing portion.
 10. A jack head as set forth in claim 9 including means for securing said bar to said head when said bar is in position in said slot means.
 11. A jack head as set forth in claim 10 wherein said attachment includes a portion which extends downwardly away from said head for lifting an object which is located below the level of said head. 